In other UFC 86 news, FightNetwork is reporting that Patrick “The Predator” Cote is apparently set to face Ricardo “Cachorrao” Almeida at the show. Although Almeida has not been officially confirmed, it looks like he’s the man:

Although Cote would neither confirm nor deny Almeida as his opponent, longtime training partner and friend David “The Crow” Loiseau said on Monday that the heavy-handed Quebec native would be taking on the decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt.

Cote has notched a 12-4 pro record and is 6-1 since back-to-back losses in 2005. He has never been knocked out and has won his last three via TKO. The middleweight has spent much of his career in the UFC and is certainly climbing the ladder to — dare we say it — a title shot. Cote has his eyes on the prize and has a “timeline” for that to happen:

“We wanted a big fight,” Cote said. “I have four wins in a row – three in the UFC – and I think I’m ready for a real tough opponent. I want to fight a guy who, if I win, the UFC will put me in a title fight or one more fight before I get my shot.”

And while we’re rappin’ about UFC joints, another fight has also been announced — though this one for “The Ultimate Fighter 7″ finale. It’ll be a welterweight battle between Dustin “McLovin” Hazelett and “TUF 2″ fighter, Josh Burkman. The finale is reportedly going to be showcasing Diego Sanchez versus Luigi Fioravanti as the main event. The event is set for June 21st in Vegas.

Hazelett is 10-4 in his career and is coming off of a TKO loss at UFC 82 to Josh Koscheck. He nearly ended the fight in the first round, but Koscheck was able to escape and stop Hazelett in the second. Burkman also lost his last fight, but via decision to Mike Swick back at UFC Fight Night 12. He’s 9-5 overall and 1-2 in his last three.